BLOOD WEDDING

Sophie Duguet doesn't understand what's happening to her: she has begun losing things, from her recently delivered mail to the car she parked the night before. She is constantly forgetting things she's said and done . . . and things that she's supposed to do. She's even detained by the police for shoplifting-a crime she has no memory whatsoever of having committed.

But this is just the beginning. As her life unravels and she slowly sinks deeper into dementia and depression, things go from troubling to alarming. Soon she finds herself connected to the deaths of several people around her: the boy she nannies is murdered while in her care; a stranger who offers her lunch after a chance encounter winds up dead; and finally, her employer is killed in a way that suggests she was responsible. And she doesn't remember a thing about any of it.

Desperate to escape the nightmare, a confused and horrified Sophie changes her name and relocates, hoping to outrun the demons that have begun to plague her. But this may not be enough to stop the evil that has poisoned her life and begun to claim the lives of everyone around her . . .

Pierre Lemaitre was born in Paris in 1951. He worked for many years as a teacher of literature and now writes novels and screenplays. He was awarded the Crime Writers' Association International Dagger twice, for Alex and Camille, two books in his crime trilogy featuring Commandant Camille Verhoeven. He also won the Prix Goncourt, France's most prestigious literary award, for his novel Au revoir là-haut, published in English as The Great Swindle.

PRAISE

"A really excellent suspense novelist.” —Stephen King

"Creepy, demented, and typical of Lemaitre's crime fiction: unpredictable in a deliciously depraved way. Readers . . . will not be disappointed. Atmospheric and chilling and packed with Lemaitre's trademark twists and turns.” —Kirkus Reviews

"Adrenaline-charged . . . The narrative is reminiscent of Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl with numerous twists and turns as the story exposes layers of motives of the main characters. Highly recommended for all mystery fans.” — Library Journal

"Absorbing and disturbing . . . The Psycho-based denouement is extraordinary.” —Marcel Berlins, The Times

"Pierre Lemaitre strikes me as having a block of ice where his heart should be . . . This is a thoroughly frightening account of how easily and how badly an ordinary life can go wrong.” —Charlotte Heathcote, Sunday Express

"A psycho-chiller of the first order which will have you looking at even family and friends suspiciously.” —Jon Wise, Weekend Sport

"[Lemaitre] has gone from strength to strength . . . The ghost of Alfred Hitchcock hovers over this one, but there's little doubt that the Master of Suspense would feel that his legacy is in reliable hands.” —Barry Forshaw, Independent

"A scorching, serpentine novel . . . Lemaitre's skill shines from every page, supported at every turn by an elegantly constructed plot complete with elements of noir that would make even James Ellroy proud.” — Geoffrey Wansell, Daily Mail

"if you only read one thriller this summer, do make sure it's this one. Highly recommended.” —Raven Crime Reads